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Adios, California?

Three years ago, an initiative sought to split the mega-state up. Had that measure succeeded, the U.S. Congress would have decided whether to permit the Golden State to become six separate states — with ten more U.S. Senators.

Now, a group called “Yes California” is petitioning for a 2018 ballot measure on leaving these United States altogether: Secession. “California could do more good as an independent country than it is able to do as just a U.S. state,” says its website.

Supporters argued in a recent Washington Postfeature that California “subsidizes other states at a loss.” Indeed, it’s one of 14 states that get less money back from the federal government than paid in taxes.

And there’s Trump. Opposition to the president is palpable. California provided Hillary Clinton with a 4.3 million popular vote margin over Republican Donald Trump, 1.5 million more than her national margin.

“It’s understandable why the election of an evil white supremacist swindler as president,” wroteZócalo Public Square’s Joe Mathews in the Fresno Bee, “has given the idea of California independence such currency.” Nonetheless, he opposes #CalExit as divisive and “not very Californian.”

But, remember: Northern Californians have been agitating to secede from the state since 1941. Those desires are picking up steam — especially with trepidation over whether the Oroville dam will hold. Folks feel unrepresented in the state capitol.*

And they are. Already 21 of the 23 northernmost counties have made declarations to form the State of Jefferson.

Let Californians decide . . . county by county.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

* Note that Trump won by a landslide in the counties that would comprise Jefferson, our would-be 51st state.

f they had a voice in the matter, probably a lot of Americans would vote for Calevict – evicting California from the union. Given the propensity for many Americans to self-segregate – move to areas where more people think (and vote) as they do, probably a lot of Californians would move elsewhere within the state.
This is the first I’ve heard of the possibility of five new states. The last such breakup plan suggested breaking California into three parts – northern, central and southern CA. I would think six might dilute the state’s voting clout. Granted there would be ten new senators, but the rest of the votes would be pretty evenly split among six states. Each state would count for less in the Electoral College and the whole might turn out to be less than the sum of its parts. Liberals would probably lose more than they think they stand to gain.

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